“I can’t eat half of what I used to... I was 296lbs”: Ronnie Coleman gets honest about his health after retirement
The eight-time Mr. Olympia, Ronnie Coleman, is known for his behemoth physique during his prime days and for eating like a beast. However, the King of Bodybuilding is now struggling to even maintain half of his diet. In a recent YouTube video uploaded on his channel, he shed light on the struggles he is facing after his retirement.
"I can't; I probably can't eat half what I used to eat," Ronnie Coleman said. [23:09]
Continuing further, the King shed light on the fact that he started his pro-show journey with a weight of 220 pounds. But when boxer Tommy Furry asked the eight-time Mr. Olympia about his last show's weight, it caught him by surprise.
"295 on stage on stage," said Coleman, and the boxer was shocked by his weight and said, "That's big, that's huge." [23:27]
The eight-time Mr. Olympia then shed light on more of the struggles he faced while competing. He talked about one of the lesser-known incidents of the 2001 Mr. Olympia. Ronnie Coleman was competing for his fourth consecutive win in 2001.
"The 01 when I almost died woke up exhausted because I tried to do the Arnold Classic that year and I found out the body only peaks once a year yeah and I thought I could do it twice almost took me out never did made that mistake again," explained the eight-time Mr. Olympia. [23:48]
Ronnie Coleman felt like he could have died due to dehydration before the show. Things got out of control, and he even thought about going to the hospital. But his coach and nutritionist, Chad Nicolas, advised him to drink some water, and the King felt better after doing so.
He held water on the stage, costing him the morning show. However, the bodybuilder recovered from that and ended up winning the show.
Peak Ronnie Coleman's diet
The King of Bodybuilding ate like a mad beast in his prime and consumed nearly 5,000 calories a day. Not only that, he roughly ate 600 grams of protein to maintain his colossal physique.
As mentioned in the Fitness Volt article, the eight-time Mr. Olympia broke down his diet as follows: 65% protein, 20–25% carbs, and 5–10% fat. Coleman always tried to eat as few carbs as possible. He even mentioned that his carb intake was around 125 grams a day.
The bodybuilding giant kicked off his day with two cups of egg whites, 3/4 cup of grit cheese, and coffee, along with his supplements. For his second meal, he ate 16 ounces of chicken breast with one 3/4 cup of red beans and brown rice, along with two pieces of cornbread. To chug this meal, he also drank 3 to 5 liters of arginine.
Coleman's third meal consisted of 16 ounces of chicken breast and a medium-sized baked potato. The last meal included a lot of post-workout supplements and whey protein blends. He also ate nine ounces of filet mignon with five ounces of chicken breast, along with a medium-baked potato, fries, and a refreshing lemonade. Ronnie Coleman's three meals included chicken to fulfill his massive 600-gram protein intake to support his massive physique.
Are you also amazed by the massive protein intake of the King? Let us know in the comments.